Debate-eve polls: Romney is within striking distance

President Obama is narrowly ahead of Republican challenger Mitt Romney in two national polls published on the eve of a Wednesday evening debate likely to be viewed by more than 50 million Americans.

(Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP/GettyImages)

But Romney is within striking distance, particularly if he does well in a debate that majorities of voters in both surveys expect Obama to win.

Obama is ahead 49-46 percent among likely voters, and 51-44 percent among all voters in an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released Tuesday night. The President’s advantage is built, in large measure, by support among women voters.

A similar margin, 49-45 percent among likely voters, was recorded in a national poll by Quinnipiac University. It found Obama with a whopping 56-38 percent lead among women, with Romney ahead among men by 52-42 percent.

“It is very difficult to win an election when you’re getting shellacked among women, the group that makes up half of the electorate,” said Peter Brown, deputy polling director at Quinnipiac.

But polls are a snapshot in time, and can differ. Quinnipiac puts Romney ahead 47-45 percent among Independent voters, while NBC/Wall Street Journal has the President narrowly in the lead.

The divisions of America are displayed in the NBC/WSJ survey. Obama has a 95-3 percent advantage among African-American voters, and captures 70 percent support among Latinos. Romney is ahead 54-41 percent among white voters, and enjoys a 52-43 percent advantage with elderly voters.

One note of weakness for the President: NBC/WSJ found less enthusiasm for Obama among younger voters, a bulwark of his 2008 victory, than four years ago.